Sun Glory For Mankind
by Elliot Pole
Summary: Jafar's brother comes into the night and steals the Sultan's toys.  The Sultan then commences suicide, and Genie tells Aladdin that he must go on a journey without Abu, Carpet, Jasmine, or the Genie himself.
1. Chapter 1

**Sun Glory of Mankind**

"We'll live happily ever after," Aladdin told his bride, right after their wedding. Both Jasmine and he believed these words were true.

The Sultan rested peacefully in his room, surrounded by tiny animal figurines. In his right hand he held a hippo; in the left a toucan. He was dreaming of the goodness that would come to his domain, and the excellence in Princess Jasmine's choice.

Suddenly, from without the Sultan's quarters, a trumpet blast was made, which, sonorously disturbing his dreams, forced him to awaken. Aladdin and Jasmine could hear nothing, for the magic of the instrument was that it could only be heard by those the player wished.

"What's that noise?" the Sultan asked, aloud. And then a man with slimy, green skin, a yellow beard that nearly reached the ground, a bare chest, and thick pantaloons, entered.

"Semalil! I thought you were banished from the kingdom!"

"I thought I was too, but my brother kindly granted me passage."

"That loathsome Jafar! Well, what do you desire? I don't normally permit anyone to disturb my slumber."

"You know what I want. You're entire animal figurine collection. Every last one, from the giraffe to the goat to the scorpion. If you don't give them to me, I shall take your life."

"No, I can't part with them!"

"In that case," Semalil said, pulling out a titanium sword from his belt, "assassination shall be your reward."

"No!" the Sultan shouted, shrinking back towards the wall. "No, not my life. Is there anything else I might interest you with?"

"Absolutely nothing!" He advanced forward. "Now I am even more in earnest. How you could maltreat Jafar, the best man in your court, I cannot begin to conjecture. Now you shall pay for your inequities!"

By now Semalil had cornered the Sultan. He took the sword and stripped off the cloth covering the ruler's left shoulder.

"Fine, I'll give you all my toys. Take them, but not my life!"

"Excellent answer," Semalil concurred. "But you must gather them for me. I will hold this sack, and you pour them in." A burlap bag was produced, for this endeavor.

The Sultan miserably got on all fours and grabbed the toys nearest him. Elephants and chickens, whales and alligators, platypuses and koalas, monkeys and lions, tigers and bears, dogs and pelicans and penguins and bovine and swine, all went into the sack.

When he had concluded, the Sultan said, "I have given you all. Now will you leave?"

"You lie! There are some under your pillow."

Never did anyone see an Arab move so slowly, without joy or vigor, as Semalil watched the Sultan. The pillow was removed, and sure enough, there was a gazelle, a serpent, and a field mouse.

"Thank you. Now your life shall be spared." Then Semalil left.

The next morning, Aladdin and Jamine were roughly awakened by a servant, who was retching in fear.

"Master Aladdin! Princess Jasmine! Something terrible has happened!"

"What?"

"Your father," the servant said, turning to the princess, "has killed himself!"

"Huh? But, that's impossible! He was just fine at the wedding yesterday."

"Allow us time to get dressed, and we'll discuss this in an hour," Aladdin said, dismissing the servant.

Once they had donned on some decent clothes (Jasmine wore a black dress), they came downstairs, where all the servants and guards were gathered.

"So, let me get this straight. The Sultan is dead?"

"Aye, Prince Aladdin. Poison, we believe. A witch-doctor is examining him as we speak."

"Why would he commit suicide?"

"We have no clue," said a female servant.

"Yes, we do," said the head of the guards. "His toys were missing."

"Those funny animal figures he liked to stack up to create a sort of house of cards?" Aladdin queried, laughing.

"Stop it!" Jasmine said, slapping his impetuously. She was terribly upset, and even the man she loved could be a victim of her anger.

"It was an idiosyncrasy of his," the guard said. "But an idiosyncrasy he could not live without. And now he is no longer among the living."

"But who could've stolen them? You don't suppose that it happened during the wedding?"

"Nope, not then, for I conducted him to his bedchambers afterward, and there they were."

"Then it happened during the night?"

"It appears so."

"The thief must've entered the palace somehow," Aladdin said, using his critical thinking skills. "Do you have any suspicions about that? For instance, how could he have gotten past the guards?"

"I suspect Filsha, the seventeen-year-old servant who kept an inventory of the Sultan's collection. And as for the guard, it had to be Lucario, whom I ordered to watch the west wing. They are suspected of being lovers, Prince."

"Then, I order Filsha and Lucario to step forward."

But no one moved.

"I'm sorry to inform you of this, Prince, but Filsha is not present, and Lucario has run away."

"Where is Filsha?"

"In the sewing room, weaving a silk gown for Princess Jasmine's soiree next month."

"Bring her here."

Four guards were sent to collect the deceitful woman, and when she was brought forward, she seemed to stare straight ahead, not even aware that she had brought an evil upon their heads.

"Filsha, you have been accused of helping a thief navigate the palace. Do you deny this charge?"

"Prince Aladdin," she said, curtseying, perhaps hoping that he would be lenient, "I deny only that I was in charge of my full faculties last night, for I had drunk quite a bit at the banquet."

"Quite a bit!" one of the other servants jeered. "You only had a half-glass on wine, hardly enough to become intoxicated with."

"What did the culprit look like?"

At first, Filsha refused to answer. But the impending silence taxed on her nerves, and finally she gave in. "He had green skin, a long yellow beard, and appeared to be thirsty for power."

Jasmine gasped. "Semalil!"

"Who's Semalil?" Aladdin wondered.

"Jafar's brother," the head of the guards supplied, when Jasmine became dumb again. "He was once known as the Green Warden. He used to have my position, but he abused it, and was sent away, banished from the kingdom and told if he ever came back here, he would be hung and his face would adorn the wall of His Majesty, the Sultan, like a game animal."

"It appears that he ignored the threat."

"Only because of the wedding, or something else. He must have a new confidence. Maybe he didn't expect that people would be overly cautious following a celebration. This does explain why Lucario permitted him entrance; Lucario was the most devoted to the Green Warden."

Filsha jumped at the name. "Please don't punish him, if he is caught! I'll suffer twice, for myself and for him, but do not harm Lucario!"

The head of the guards grinned. His suspicions had been correct. "Prince, what do you think the punishment shall be?"

"Fifty stripes," Aladdin said, without hesitation. "I'm sure Jasmine will agree." The beautiful princess nodded her head.

The head of the guards and four others took Filsha away. But just before they exited the room, Abu climbed down from Aladdin's shoulder. He ran after the six people going to the dungeon. All of the other guards and servants went out as well.

"I suppose the only thing we can do is prepare for the funeral."

"No!" Jasmine said. "A funeral will acknowledge that he is dead, which is exactly what I don't want."

"But, the people will eventually find out that the Sultan is gone."

"I'd like to prevent that moment as long as possible."

The Genie appeared out of thin air. "What's this I hear about a dead Sultan and a theft of toys?"

"All true, Genie."

"Al, this is bad, very bad. Hakuna matata is thrown out the door. PANIC! PAIN! If he is dead. If, if is good."

"There's no if in this case, Genie. He has poisoned himself."

"Ooh, an Emma Bovary moment. Now, my question to you is, why would anyone steal plastic animals?"

"It was Jafar's brother."

"Jafar has family? Oh, I think my friend Scuttle brought me a dinglehopper," he said, pulling out a fork from his pocket. He made his hairdo blond and girly, then started brushing it in a conceited manner. "Now, where was I? Oh, yes. Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the fairest of them all? 'Semalil!'"

"Genie, if there was ever a time I wished you could bring someone back from the dead, now is it."

"You won't want me to after I tell you something I should've told you a long time ago. Sit down, please." He summoned three loveseats, red in hue. But Jasmine declined to join them.

"Is the princess feeling peachy?" the Genie asked Aladdin, never able to speak to Jasmine directly.

"I have a lot to think about," she said. And she went to her bedchambers.

The Genie now took on the form of a psychiatrist, with glasses and two hundred pounds, as well as a nurse's uniform. "Al, you've got problems."

"Yes I know, with this suicide and this burglary."

"No, it's much worse. Semalil is a monster, makes Jafar look like a domestic cat."

"You mean I'm up against something much greater?"

"Yes, even more than you ever imagined. And you won't be able to fight it cooped up in the palace."

"Then I must travel? Well, I'll take Abu and the Magic Carpet and Jasmine, and you'll come with me…"

"No, Aladdin. You must go alone."

"Alone? You mean without you and Jasmine?"

Now the Genie transformed into a teacher with a chalkboard, upon which he wrote "Alone means alone."

"Please be more explicit."

"You must go without Abu, the Magic Carpet, Jasmine, or me."

"Why? Abu will never let me leave without him."

"Oh, you'll find a way to get rid of him," the Genie said, his eyes twinkling, though one could not deduce that it was a happy twinkle.

Disbelieving, Aladdin said, "Well, Carpet and I will still journey together."

"Keep on thinking that. Now, let's get down to brass tacks. You have yet to ask me what the purpose of this journey is."

"Why, isn't it to punish Jafar's brother?"

"Substantially, yes; ostensibly, no. You'd never be able to defeat him anyhow, especially since he has what he desired."

"Oh, come on. Plastic animals can't harm anyone."

"In Semalil's hands, toys are greater weapons than real animals." Now Genie took on the form of a scholarly linguist. "When you translate Semalil from the original Morganian, it means 'Game.' To a purpose born with such a name, everything is play. He is ruthless, and shall play until he wins."

"Then what must I do?"

"You must find the three people known as the Trinity and induce them to give you their precious gifts. Game pieces, to fight Semalil."

"The Trinity?"

"Veronika, Nharla, and Debussy. Veronika possesses jewels, Nharla has the Golden Keycorn, and Debussy owns the Seventy Camels of Suderland. Each of these will help you in beating Semalil, but you must succeed at each individual task they ask of you first."

"I still don't see how two inch figures can be dangerous."

"Rest assured, you will, whether you remain here and await destruction, or go out there and seek it. The latter is an infinitely better option, for then you at least have a chance at survival."

There was a knock from without, and the Genie vanished. His chairs went with him, causing Aladdin to stumble to the ground.

Brushing himself off, he stood erect when the head of the guards entered, carrying a dead animal in his arms. "I'm sorry, Prince."

Aladdin looked carefully at the creature. "Abu! What happened?"

"He jumped in front of Filsha after watching her receive a few stripes. I think he took fifteen hits, but the punisher would not cease. He was a dead heap when we reached him."

"Nooooooooo!" Aladdin moaned. "How can this be?" Several flashbacks came to him. Abu as an elephant when he first wore his princely uniform. Abu and Carpet having one of their quarrels. Abu reaching to grab the gold that attracted him so much. This monkey, this friend, was no more.

"Put him in a sack. We will have to hold a double funeral."

"But ceremonies for animals are not conventional."

"And yet, somehow I feel that the Sultan would've been honored to be buried the same day as Abu."

"As you wish, Your Majesty. You are Sultan now."


	2. Chapter 2

**Sun Glory For Mankind**

**Chapter Two**

"Me? Sultan?"

"Yes. The youngest person to ever attain that position in the history of Agrabah. But it cannot be helped."

"But, I don't have the power to carry on the duties of a sultan!"

"You better learn by the day of the funeral, when you shall officially undergo the rites. He chose you to take his daughter's hand in marriage, and it is natural that you will succeed him," said the guard. "If you are desirous of a teacher, I'm sure Monsieur Guittain would do. He worked wonders with the Princess Jasmine's father."

"No, no. I think I can do without the tutor."

"Suit yourself." Then the guard left.

Genie returned in a flash. "There's one of your companions, and of course Jasmine is too grieved to even think of going anywhere. Best leave her here, anyhow."

"Will you tutor me, Genie?"

"For what, Al? I thought you learned everything from our previous adventures."

"For the position of sultan of Agrabah."

"Al, chances are that you'll never be given such a capacity."

"But the guard said as soon as Jasmine's father is six feet under—"

"You'll be well on your journey by that time, and Semalil will be seeking his revenge."

"Revenge on _what?_

"Your treatment of his brother. Jafar and Semalil were mighty close. And the only way you'll survive is if you beat the Green Warden at his own game."

"You keep mentioning a game. What is it? Chess? Poker? Cribbage?"

"No, those games actually have rules."

"What nonsense do you speak of now?"

"Semalil's game only has one rule: overwhelm the adversary till he expires."

"You mean that he will not rest until he kills me?"

"Either that or you kill him."

"Then wouldn't it be better to wait for him here with a sword?"

"Hah!" Genie laughed. "A sword kill Semalil? That's like saying throwing bricks at a vampire would put him to rest. I'm sorry, Al, ain't going to happen."

"So what am I supposed to do?"

"Go to see Veronika, alone."

"And she'll give me the power to vanquish Semalil?"

"No. Remember the Trinity? You've got a lot on your hands, Al. There's nary a man who would envy you."

"Are you certain you can't go with me?"

"No one can go with you. And I suggest you start out for the Bone Tower at midnight tonight. If you wait a moment longer, it may be too late. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a mistress to woo." Genie then vanished a second time.

Aladdin couldn't believe that Abu was dead. The guard had kindly left his corpse on a purple pillow sitting on a table in the center of the room. Abu had been such a great companion, and now he would never again frolic about on Aladdin's shoulders and express his distrust.

Then a second terrible thought entered his mind. Abu's funeral would take place the same day as the Sultan's, and if he followed Genie's advice, he'd miss it. That he could not bear. And yet he knew that Genie was right about Semalil; indeed, when had the blue guy ever been wrong?

So he decided to take Abu's body in a knapsack. This would give him comfort, although the guards might suspect something when the only corpse they had to bury was the Sultan's. For a second, Aladdin forgot that a red flag might go up in his own absence. Of course they would miss the sultan-to-be, and perhaps send a search party after him. But a missing and living Aladdin had to be better than a hunted and dead one. So they would have to find someone else to take his place.

He dressed in his streetrat garb, where it was unlikely anybody would be able to recognize him, especially since his purple, breastless shirt had become orange.

Another worry on his mind was how to tell Jasmine. She would not be pleased with his leaving, especially after her father had so recently kicked the bucket. Comfort is what she needed, not separation. He decided to leave a note: "Went to hide from Semalil. Will be back soon; try not to fret so much. Love, Aladdin."

Carpet jumped happily when he entered its chambers, and walked on its hind tresses like it did in the old days. It wasn't' so long ago, but it seemed a century had passed since then. They went outside, and Aladdin stepped on Carpet. "Fly me to Bone Tower," he said, confidently.

But Carpet did not move. "What's wrong?" Aladdin asked it. "You don't know where Bone Tower is?"

It tried to lift itself up, but it was impossible. Aladdin got off. "Am I too heavy for you now? Try to fly again."

However, the same thing occurred. Carpet had lost its ability!

Aladdin became so furious that he rolled up Carpet and insisted on carrying it to the marketplace. When he got there, he saw a man who had a barrel of maggots he was going to dispose of. "Wait, would you like a magic carpet instead?" Aladdin asked.

The man's look became greedy, and he agreed to give his maggots up for Carpet, after which exchange Aladdin took to his heels in the dark night.

When he removed the lid from the barrel, instead of seeing maggots, there was a map. Curiosity aroused, he oiled a lamp he had brought with him, and examined this document. Bone Tower was seventy miles south of Agrabah. He wanted to scream, for he had no idea how to get there, and if Semalil was hunting him...

But Jafar's brother could not commence the hunt until he had visited the palace, which event could happen at any moment now. Would Semalil come after Aladdin himself, or send some minions to capture him? How much time did he have?

He felt something slimy brush against his legs. Glancing downward, he saw a cobra. It bit him on his left leg, and he howled in agony. He was afraid someone would come running to discover the source of the noise, but no one seemed to hear it. Then he saw a dromedary tethered to a pine tree. Walking over, he unfastened it and climbed on its back.

"Go to Bone Tower," he whispered in its ear, although he didn't expect it to understand. However, it seemed to comprehend his words, for it strode forward at a steady pace. He could not make it go any faster, no matter what he tried.

In the morning, the camel was still going. Aladdin could not make it stop. And when the sun rose, he was astonished to discover that his steed was rainbow-colored. Its face was yellow, and its neck divided between red and blue. The hump was orange, the body purple, and the legs jade-green. It was one of the most magnificent phenomena Aladdin had ever seen.

It took them a full three days to arrive at their destination. Bone Tower was literally made up of the marrow in osseous tissue. Just looking at it made Aladdin want to barf, but he dismounted his dromedary and entered.

On the ground floor, dust particles nearly blinded Aladdin. He approached the stairway, coughing and choking, and climbed. It seemed like hours, months, years passed away while he was walking up stairs. Would this interminable flight of steps ever end? And, what a relief it was when he set his foot on the uppermost floor.

There was a cowbell hanging by a hook in midair, which he removed, and then rang, wondering what would happen. Instantly he heard a rooster crow and the gnashing of teeth.

"Oh, whomever could that be visiting me at eleven o' clock in the morning? Elroy, go let the stranger in."

Presently a chimpanzee approached and pulled Aladdin forward. He saw an elderly woman with a coronet on her head, sitting on a bronze throne. "You frightened Pishu into eating Valmont. This better be important," she said, as sweetly as possible, though she was gritting her teeth.

"Who's Pishu?"

The woman pointed to a plush lion.

"But, that's just a toy!"

"What brings you here, stranger?"

"Are you Veronika?" He just noticed her shark tooth's necklace.

"Indeed I am."

"Genie sent me here."

"Who's Genie?"

"A blue guy I found in a lamp, who granted me three wishes, the last of which that he would be set free."

"I know no one like that. But what did he send you for?"

"Well, Agrabah is under attack by a man named Semalil who kidnapped the sultan's animal figurines. And now he's after me."

"I don't think I can help anyone in your kind of predicament."

"It's some kind of game."

"A game with toys, you say? And you mistrust Pishu's ability to eat?" she said, and then she suddenly became alarmed. "Wait, what did you say his name was?"

"Semalil."

"No, no not him! I should've been dead before this day arrived! Curse everything!" Her eyes were wild with fear. Elroy gave Aladdin a murderous look.

"What's wrong?"

"You, boy, you must do everything you can to defeat him. It won't be enough, but let's hope that twenty generations in the future things will be right. If Semalil is not stopped—and I fear it is too late—the whole world will fall under his despotic control, and a communistic society will make slaves of us all!"

She yanked the cowbell that Aladdin had put around his neck as she said this.

"Do you value your freedom, boy?"

"Yes, I do."

"Well, then, I'll help you." She released the cowbell. "Elroy, lift the lid."

There was a sewerlike hole in the middle of the room. The chimp removed its lid, and went to fetch some rope, which he tied about Aladdin's waist.

"However, there is a price," she said nastily, once his waist was secure. "Elroy, search the bag."

Aladdin's knapsack was removed, and the chimp ignored his, "Noooooooooooooo!"

Abu's body was discovered and set before the lion plush. "Now take the cowbell, and ring it," the woman ordered. But this time her demands were aimed at Aladdin not Elroy.

"I won't do it!" he shouted defiantly.

"If you don't do it, I won't help you fight Semalil."

"Fine, then, I'll ring," almost breathless. As soon as he had done so, Pishu came to life and devoured Abu's corpse before Aladdin's very eyes.

Elroy took him over to the hole and lowered him down with the rope, ignoring his protests. It was pitch-dark. After he had gone fifteen feet, the chimp cut it, and Veronika cackled, "It's a long way down!"

For fourteen minutes, Aladdin felt as though he were floating on air. Then he hit the ground hard, falling into an unconscious state.


	3. Chapter 3

**Sun Glory For Mankind**

**Chapter Three**

At 12:01 a.m. the night Aladdin left the palace, Lucario opened the front gate. He had killed the two guards in front of it with a double-edged sword, and eagerly led Semalil into the building.

Semalil looked remarkably different from our portrayal of him in the first chapter. For one thing, he no longer had the yellow beard, though his hair was now a peculiar shade of goldenrod. Furthermore, he was the spitting image of Aladdin, if you didn't mind green skin, anyhow.

As they were turning the corner to enter the West Wing, the head of the guards saw them. "Lucario, what is the meaning of this? Are you serving that rotten lord, Jafar's brother?"

"It's all right," Semalil said. "He's just leading me to my bedchambers." The voice resembled Aladdin's to the very pitch.

The head of the guards could not make the man out in the dark, though he knew Lucario by his breadth and motions. Thus, it was easy for him to mistake the man before him to be the future sultan of Agrabah. "But Prince, he's a traitor!"

"I shall deal with him as I see fit," Semalil said, his tone indicating dismissal. The guard had no choice but to withdraw.

Lucario led the sultan to Aladdin's room, where Jasmine was sleeping soundly. "A beautiful woman this guy had, isn't she? It's too bad she'll never be his again."

His servant walked about the room, discovering a note on Jasmine's boudoir. "Semalil, come here."

"What is it?"

"A note for the girl. Saying that Aladdin has run away from you."

"He has not run away."

"How do you know this, sir?"

"I am Aladdin."

"Oh, of course. Shall I burn the missive?"

"Dispose of it how you think best. And I'll dispose of _my _wife how I think best."

Lucario left Semalil to his own design.

In the morning, Jasmine was the first to wake. When she saw her bedfellow, she began shrieking. This presently brought Semalil out of dreamland, where he cuffed her mouth with his hand, and stared deep into her eyes. "I am Aladdin," he said, gently.

"You are Aladdin."

"You will calm down."

"I will calm down."

He released her gaze, and a maid came in to ask what all the fuss was about. "Oh, nothing," Semalil said. "Jasmine just had a horrible nightmare."

"Are you sure you're strong today, Prince? You appear to be ill."

"No, I'm fine. Excuse my green shade, I may be unripe."

"That's incredibly funny," Jasmine said, coquettishly. "I forgot you had such a _tantalizing _wit."

The maid retreated, running into the head guard. "What was all that screaming?" he demanded to know.

"Princess Jasmine has had a nightmare, and her husband looks rather sickly."

"That's strange. He seemed to favor Lucario last night."

"That is not my affair; speak to him of this oddity when he emerges, if you wish."

The chief guard waited for Aladdin to emerge, and he was also disturbed by the Prince's want of a lighter hue. "You've changed remarkably," he told Semalil.

"That's neither here nor there. I feel the same as I did when I woke up yesterday morning."

"How can that be? Surely you're disturbed by the deaths of your father-in-law and your monkey?"

"Oh yes, them. Well, I'm mildly concerned, but life moves on. Wait, my monkey, did you say?"

"Are you feeling feverish? Yes, Abu is gone. Remember the tramp Filsha was being flogged for permitting that odious rascal of a brother Jafar kept hidden away into this palace."

This caused Semalil to go into a rage. He lifted the guard's garment about the neck and almost hurled him across the room.

"What did I say?" the head guard wished to know.

Thinking quickly, Semalil came up with an excuse that was not entirely against his beliefs. "Oh, nothing. It may be that I'm just irascible today. Or perhaps I'm angry that you let that happen to an innocent ape!"

"I told you before: he jumped in the way!"

"I don't care!" Semalil yelled, tossing the guard with no thought of the consequences.

The poor man's jowl was busted when it made contact with the wall. Blood poured from his gums, and he developed a migraine. "That's what happens when people allow harm to come to animals," Semalil said, leaving the guard to wisp.

The guard died within three hours, for Semalil's force was so powerful that he went through a series of convulsions. The guard were called forward, and Lucario was appointed to take his place.

"Lucario? When did he return? And wasn't he a traitor?"

"Do you question my methods, Badlou?" Semalil queried, after learning from Lucario the temerarious one's name. "If you do, you can be flogged like Filsha."

"Filsha was flogged?" Lucario asked, greatly perturbed, for she was girl.

"Yes, and it's all your fault, for letting that stupid brother of Jafar into the palace!"

"_Never _let me hear you speak ill of Jafar or his family!" Semalil exclaimed, giving Badlou a menacing glare.

"What's eating him?" another of the guards whispered to a buddy.

"From now on, there are going to a few changes around here. For one thing, you will refer to the palace as the Sun. The Sun of Agrabah, got it? Why, you may wonder. Because this place is the center of the Arabic World, and it is best that it be referred to by the name of the solar body that shines forth its rays over us each and every day."

"What are we supposed to call the Sun, sir?"

"Call it the Blight, for it is oppressive and ought to be rooted out of existence."

"What we do for light if that happens?"

"Candles and tapers work just as well as solar power."

"But to have eternal night—"

"…sounds extremely beautiful, I agree. Another thing is that all you guards will require companions."

"What kind of companions?"

"Oh, the fauna sort," Semalil said, offhandedly. "Balou, in spite of your impudence, I will award you with the first companion to show the rest what I had in mind. Lucario, bring forth the red curtain."

A trolley with wheels hidden behind the curtain was presented to the man. Balou took a tentative step forward.

"I award you with the viper."

A snake emerged from behind the curtain and crawled up Balou's legs till it reached his neck, upon which it perched. The guard stared at it with fright; it was no welcome beast.

Three more guards stepped forward. The first was given a guinea pig, the second a rooster ("Great! Now I don't need any more insomnia pills!"), and the last a sparrow. Other guards were also given animals, but it would be too tedious to run through the whole compendium here.

Lucario's companion was a feisty ostrich. Nobody envied him, for they believed it would peck his eyes out in his sleep, or otherwise lay an egg on him that would be too heavy to remove.

One of the guards, who had a doe for a companion, wondered what would happen if the tiger Rajah got a hold of it. "No tiger will harm any of them, for to all animals your companions are friends. It is humans you have to worry about."

"Wait! If these companions are not going to be useful for fighting human adversaries, what _good _are they?"

"If you befriended a rhino and a plethora of poachers attacked, would you hide behind him and expect him to protect you?" queried the wise Semalil.

"Why, of course."

"Then I have been unwise in giving you a companion. It is for you to love, not for you to send it out and fight. The life of your companion is more important than your own; if it dies before you do, you'll regret it to the end of your days. I promise you that if that ever happens, you will be rewarded with death in life."

The guard looked pitifully at his doe, wondering what it tasted like, not out of hunger but out of spite. He had heard that venison was quite the delicacy in other parts of the world and had been waiting to try it, whenever the opportunity arose. But he would not kill his companion deliberately. And all the threats the pseudo-Aladdin made meant nothing to him, if his companion could satisfy his epicurean desires.

The Palace and minuets, among other things, went through a significant color change. Whereas before they had been somewhat golden or spring-yellow in hue, now they were darkish purple to black, which resembled anything more than the Sun. If there had been any philosophers present in the court, they might've said that eternal night was upon Agrabah. But no one would've surmised that Semalil was in their midst.

"And now that everything is in order, the game shall begin!" Jafar's brother laughed wickedly.


	4. Chapter 4

**Sun Glory For Mankind**

**Chapter Four**

Rats crawled over the unconscious body of Aladdin, and only a few astute members of the clan could discern that he was still alive. One bit him to see if his flesh was anything satisfactory, but it was disappointed at the bland taste.

It took two hours for him to rouse himself, and when he had, he was dizzy with pain. At first he could not recollect how he ended up down here; the last thing he could remember was getting married to Jasmine. It was very dark, and he might've surmised that he was still in the palace, except that the walls were too narrowly inclined. Furthermore, he was on the floor, and surely the sultan's heir wouldn't be dumped on the ground so easily?

He dusted himself off and stood up, and, touching his chest, he realized that he was in his streetrat garb. Everything that happened in the last three days came back in a flash. It was because of Jafar's brother that he was down here, instead of with his wife. Where was here, anyhow? It had to be somewhere at the bottom of Bone Tower; he knew that much. He lighted a taper. Something odd was amiss, for the walls were entirely covered with jewelry!

Pearl necklaces, diamond earrings, jade bracelets, rings of onyx, ruby, emerald, sapphire, topaz, watches constructed with rare metals, mere trinkets, great works of art, everything that can be worn to adorn and complement one's attire, were shimmering in the flickering light of Aladdin's taper. And then he saw a hall, which he decided to explore.

In the hall, the walls lost their bijoux and instead took up portraiture. There was Veronika when she was a young girl, there her grandmother, as much of a hag as she herself looked now. Also, a man, neither Venoika's father nor her husband, for another man was shown in the one depicting her in a wedding gown. This man was young and springy, whereas her husband was thirty years her senior.

Suddenly, he heard a hiccupping, which seemed to be coming from the side of the hall opposite the one he left. He moved at a faster pace now, and finally emerged in an anteroom of a marvelous castle. How could this be? he wondered. He had just exited the cellar of Bone Tower—he could not possible be in a castle now. Nevertheless, all appearances proved to him that he was.

A stairway was now in front of him, but he noticed the source of the noise that had drawn him there. It was a twelve-year-old girl, wearing a pink pinafore, and seemingly sweet and innocent. If Aladdin had began a student of human aging, he would've surmised that this girl was just like Jasmine at that age. And he had a desperate urge to relieve her of her ailment. Luckily, there was a gourd next to a water fountain in the anteroom. To this he traveled, filled the gourd, and return to the dear child, pouring the liquid in her awaiting mouth, for she seemed unable to move a muscle.

Once she had been cured of the hiccups, she spoke. "Thank you, brave knight."

"I'm not a knight; I'm a sultan." The words startled Aladdin as soon as he uttered them.

"Sultan?" she said laughingly, as if this word were foreign to her and she got thrills from trying it out.

"Have you never heard of Agrabah?"

"That sounds like a place I may've read about somewhere: a story involving a king who beheaded every mistress he had the morning after they lay together. Then she met a woman who started telling him a long tale, and she was not done when the sun rose. He decided to hold off killing her till he knew the conclusion of the story. But the next day came, and the next, and the next, till at last one-thousand and one nights elapsed, and he kept her alive."

"I've never heard of that," Aladdin said, feeling uncomfortable.

"Oh, it's just one of those stories children come across. But if you want me to tell you more, you must bring me some jewelry."

"I don't have any."

"But you know where some can be found, don't you?"

Aladdin could not deny that he did. She pouted, and he had no choice but to return down the dark hall and pull some pearls or necklaces off the wall. Accomplishing this task, he came back to the girl and gave it to her.

"Just like a lady!" she exclaimed, merrily.

"Yes, well, do you know who Veronika is?"

"Veronika? That sounds like some kind of pudding."

"Never mind. What will happen if I traipse up these stairs?"

She stared at him horrorstruck. "You don't want to do that."

"Why not?"

"The black cat," she said, but did not elaborate.

"I just want to go home," Aladdin said, turning his back to her and slumping down on the floor.

"Home? That sounds like a fictional place in the World of Oz by L. Frank Baum. I wouldn't know anything about it."

"What do you know?" Aladdin queried, turning his head round.

"A husband."

"But you're only twelve!"

"In my culture, that's the best age to get married."

"Surely you don't want…"

"You and I would make wonderful music together."

Aladdin was disgusted with her coquetry. She was a mere child, a neophyte—did she really expect _him _to marry her? That was preposterous, totally out-of-the-question, even had he not already been Jasmine's husband. He didn't even know this girl's name.

"I'm Ana Yorbelli Corselet Bromm Hiumot Golte II," the girl informed him.

"How about I just call you Ana?"

"That's sweet. So, will you be my husband?"

"If I married you, I would be a cuckold."

"Really? Sounds wonderful! Let's call the priest." She removed a bell from her pocket and rang it.

Abruptly a fat friar in a blue habit approached. He carried a testimony and two rings. "Dearly beloved, we are not gathered hear today to witness the convergence of two amicable people…"

He went through a long litany of duties for the married couple, that Aladdin did not hear at his own wedding to Jasmine. Then he said, "Do you, Ana, take this man to be your awful wedded husband, to hold and to cherish, in sickness and in health, for better or for worse, and forsaking all others, so long as you both shalt live?"

"I do."

"And do you, Aladdin, take this girl to be your awful wedded wife, to hold and to cherish, in sickness and in health, for better or for worse, and forsaking all others, so long as you both shalt live?"

It was the "forsaking all others," that boiled Aladdin's blood. To think that he could forget Jasmine for this little nymphet! To throw away his dreams, his hopes, all for nothing. "I…" But he turned to her face, and she gave him a look worthy of a Gorgon. He was so frightened by this that he ended up saying, "..dooooooooooo."

So he was married a second time. All his dignity was lost, as the friar said those baneful words, "You may now kiss the bride."

Of course, Aladdin had no choice but to oblige. He had never kissed anyone but Jasmine before, let alone a child. But instead of kissing her lips, which would've been distasteful to him, he approached her cheek.

"The lips are the more traditional way, but I suppose that will do," Ana said. "Now, go get me some more jewels!"

"Why should I?"

"Because you're my husband, and everyone knows that a husband has to obey every command his wife gives him, on punishment of death."

_Personally, I'd rather be dead than your spouse, _Aladdin thought.

He left the anteroom and fetched a bracelet, the most magnificent one among a collection of them. Hoping it would suffice, he took it to Ana, and she gleamed with delight.

"Aladdin," she said, speaking in a much more mature voice than formerly, "you have three times obliged me, against your better judgment. First, you gave me a drink and cured my hiccups, then you married me, and finally, you have given me jewelry. When I was alive, no one did any of these things—I was loathed and treated poorly. My mother abused me, my father threw me out of doors. After roaming the streets for three weeks, I felt the burden of hunger and thirst. Running out one day, I was knocked down and a horse trampled on me. I was killed at the age you see me now, while all my peers were being promised to people of great fortune. You appealed to me because you have known a plight similar to mine, until you were brought into the beautiful graces of Jasmine. Yes, I know about your wife. After I perished, I was given the position of the guardian of the Bone Tower. I was ordered to wait for someone to show me kindness, and to do without any other motive than to be polite. Thanks to you, I can now rest in peace. Some new tortured soul will now replace me. And I have a gift for you." She pulled a gem out of her collar, and placed it in his astonished hand.

The next instant, he found himself outside the tower, in front of the rainbow camel.


	5. Chapter 5

**Sun Glory For Mankind**

**Chapter Five**

Aladdin blinked. He had just spoken to a dead person, which really shook up his nerves.

After taking a few deep breaths, he mounted the camel. However, it did not move. "Go somewhere. _Please?"_

"He can't go anywhere unless you name a specific place."

Aladdin gazed around, searching for the speaker, but he saw no one.

"You're looking in the wrong direction. Try below."

Now Aladdin turned to the ground, but there was nothing save an orange lobster.

"Yes, it is I, Ruffian the lobster, who is speaking to you."

"Lobsters can't talk."

"You think I'm an object of a ventriloquist? Or some kind of genie? You're forgetting something very important, but it is not up to me to remind you. Now, I believe your next destination is Mallika, ninety-four miles in a northeasterly direction."

"How do you know where I'm supposed to go?"

"You have to see Debussy, don't you?"

"Apparently, yes," Aladdin said, recalling his conversation with Genie. "But how would you know?"

"That is a secret for me to keep and you to find out."

"Then, to Mallika!" he told the camel.

"Um…there's one minor note," Ruffian said. "You will want a companion, won't you? Will you suffer a poor crab to come along with you?"

Aladdin thought miserably of Abu. Perhaps Ruffian could take his place in a peripheral way. It was worth giving him a chance. "Hop on," said the renegade sultan.

Ruffian glided onto the camel's back, and the latter animal set off for the golious town of Mallika.

"You can fly?" Aladdin asked, bewildered.

"Glide, not fly. There's a difference."

The rest of the ride was conducted in silence. It was four days before they arrived at their destination.

Mallika is at once startling to all who view it for the first time. The first thing one sees upon approaching it is the clock tower, which instead of having numbers for the hours, it shows fruits bats in different positions, representing the bat hours. For instance, four o' clock for us is _Umbershem _for a bat. This is depicted by having the wings outstretched, fangs visible, and red, flaring eyes. When a bat hour is reached, a sonorous screech rings through the town.

The entrance to Mallika is bulwarked by a gate made of reptilian scales, some with painted eyes. It is said that the great lizard, Willhouiannie, watches all who pass the gate, determining whether they are friend or foe. If the latter, misfortune shall follow this person ceaselessly as long as he resides within the borders of Mallika.

Aladdin's entrance was favorable, for the gate sparkled silver as he went through. However, he was shocked when the first citizens he laid eyes on were giant geese, each carrying a basket of golden eggs.

"Excuse me, but can either of you direct me to Debussy?"

Their eyes rankled with fear. "Perhaps we misheard him," one of the geese suggested.

"No, no he clearly said Debussy," the other insisted, and they ran off before Aladdin could demand an explanation.

"Rigid, aren't they?" Ruffian asked.

"I just wonder how we're going to find Debussy."

"Why don't you ask them?" Ruffian pointed with his chelae at a bunch of flying creatures no larger than Aladdin's fist.

Approaching them, Aladdin realized that they resembled apples in every way, except that they had eyes and wings.

"Excuse me, but do you know where I might find Debussy?"

They ceased flopping about and stood still and midair, staring at the newcomer. "Hello, we are the Stalkans. We're never seen a creature like you before."

"Then you can't possibly help. I'm looking for a human named Debussy."

All at once the entire Stalkan race flew upwards, out of sight, all except the one who spoke to Aladdin.

"Why'd everybody leave?"

"You have frightened them. Debussy is our worst nightmare; he eats Stalkans for breakfast!"

"Where is he?"

"How should I know? If I knew, I'd be in his belly."

"Why didn't you run away when I mentioned his name?"

"We Stalkans are voice activated. That means that whenever one of us speaks, he becomes a slave to whomever he lets hear his voice, except other Stalkans, of course. I cannot run away until you order me to."

"That's a sad fix. I order you to—"

"No, Aladdin, don't. We may need the little critter. Don't force him to take his leave just yet."

Aladdin decided that Ruffian was wiser than him on this point, and he searched the area. Seeing a tunnel, he thought it'd be best to go through.

The tunnel's entrance was a post-and-lintel arch. Aladdin, Ruffian, and the Stalkan walked briskly past this arch, but they came across an invisible wall. Ruffian told Aladdin to whistle, which the latter presently did.

"Halt! Who goes there?" said a voice that sounded like fingernails rubbed across a chalkboard.

"It is I, Aladdin, his companion, a lobster named Ruffian, and a Stalkan. We would like to get through this tunnel."

"You cannot pass without a fee."

"What kind of fee?"

"You must give me the treasure of Morbius!"

"Morbius? Then you must be…"

"A troll, yes," said the creature, coming out into the light given off by Ruffian's glow. Its hair was unkempt, and its eyes were glazed. The chest was unencumbered by garments. On his feet were shoes apparently stolen from an elf; they were three sizes too small for their wearer.

"If you wish to pass, you must produce the treasure. If you do not wish to pass, happy would I be to make you my dinner," the troll said, licking his chops.

"Stalkan," Aladdin said. "I need you to beat your wings and fly to the island of Smarkaand. It is in the center of the Mediterranean, and on this island you will grow to be sixty times your actual size. Find the lunar tree, and wait by it until midnight. _At the precise moment _that the clock strikes twelve, push against the tree with all your might. It should snap if you persevere. The top part of the tree will fall thunderously to the ground, and you shall see a disk. Grab the disk and bring it here. This will save both me and the lobster, and if you do not accomplish it, I fear for my peril, as well as Ruffian's."

The Stalkan had to have the instructions repeated to him, before he took off into the air. The fiend who lived in the tunnel eyed Aladdin and the lobster hungrily. He was suspicious about how Aladdin knew so much about troll lore. The secrets of his race were supposed to be unbeknownst to all the other creatures that walked the earth, and here a common streetrat knew it as if his mother had told it to him for a bedtime story!

Four days later, the Stalkan returned, breathless and weary, clutching the disk in his wings. Aladdin took it from him and presented it to the troll.

"Satisfactory," the troll said, albeit grudgingly, for now he was deprived of a meal. "The invisible wall is no longer there."

Aladdin proceeded to go forward, but Ruffian gave a loud cough. "It seems that our friend has fainted." The sultan-to-be followed the lobster's gaze, and saw that the Stalkan was sprawled on the ground. He picked it up gently, after which the trio went onward into the tunnel.

Aladdin kept hearing sounds that reminded him of crickets, though he could not conceive why they would be present here. He also thought he felt a reptile brush against his legs, but Ruffian's faint glow didn't permit him to discern for certain. After what seemed like an hour, they emerged on the other side of the tunnel, back in broad daylight.

"I wonder if we are any closer to Debussy now," Aladdin said, and the Stalkan shivered against his palm. He released it, for during their walk it had regained its strength. "Please, Master, don't take me anywhere near the person you speak of. I'm so frightened of him."

"Ignore our friend's fears, Aladdin, or you will regret it."

"Don't worry, Stalkan. I won't let anything harm you."

A few more geese people were seen, one or two of them male. Aladdin almost made a second blunder of asking them where Debussy lodged, when he noticed a stone golem standing behind them.

The geese people passed, and Aladdin approached this figure. Every single part of the golem was made of stone, except for his bitumen eyes. Aladdin doubted that he had any understanding, but due to pressing circumstances, he decided no harm could come of inquiring.

"Do you know where I might find Debussy?"

The golem's eyes riveted on Aladdin. He appeared to be more keen on resorting to violence than disclosing information verbally, but at last he spoke, in a cruel, harrowing voice, "Our lord master Debussy lies at the top of yon hill," pointing to it—a good thirty yards distant.

"Thank you," Aladdin said, but instead of welcoming this gratitude, the golem brought one of his fists up, and nearly punched him in the stomach, which would've knocked him cold, had the Stalkan not intervened. The ensuing event shocked the entire party, including the Stalkan himself. As if he were made of glass, the golem cracked in a thousand places, crumbling to the ground.

Ruffian was the first to recover from his astonishment. He awakened Aladdin out of his stupor by pinching him on one of his legs. The Stalkan was compelled to move, though his face continued to stare back at the place where the golem had once stood.

"Did I do that?" he at last asked. "I destroyed a golem! Oh, wait till I tell all the other Stalkans! Maybe it was my willpower? Or perhaps all of us Stalkans are stronger than golems. Yeah, boy will they be surprised!"

When Ruffian reminded him where they were going, the Stalkan became his old gloomy self.

Eventually they reached the hill. They went up steadily, but when they reached the top, there was no hut or home of any sort, as Aladdin had suspected. All that could be seen was a glass container with a blue-and-white iguana in it.

"Oh, great! That golem tricked us! There's no Debussy here; just some lousy lizard."

"Did someone call my name?" the iguana said.

"You're Debussy? But I was expecting a human being."

"In Mallika? You must come from a far away place, my friend. Why are you here?"

"The Genie sent me to you. Well, to the Trinity, and as you are one of them, here I am."

"It's our time already? Time sure goes by fast. Why, I remember when I was a youngun…oh, don't let me bore you with my troubles. I know exactly what you're after. But first, you must show that you're worthy. Unless you have passed Veronika's challenge, I cannot give you the Seventy Camels of Suderland."

Aladdin produced the gem. Debussy eyed it curiously behind his glass, and at last nodded his head.

"Yes, that's it. But I have a slight problem. One of my camels is missing, the most precious one. His name is Niggle, and he is rainbow-colored, Niggle has an orange hump, purple trunk, green legs, and a yellow face. I only have sixty-nine camels to offer you, and without the other it's all completely useless."

Aladdin laughed at Debussy's speech. "I believe I have found Niggle," he said, telling about the mount who had carried him from Agrabah to Bone Tower, and then from Bone Tower to Mallika.

"Well, in that case, I need you to say a word three times. The word is _Umbershem, _which is the bat hour for four p.m. Ah, I see it has arrived now," for at that precise moment, a screech was heard throughout Mallika, signifying the most important time of day.

"_Umbershem, Umbershem, Umbershem," _Aladdin said. Then he felt a lump in his pocket.

He started to put his hand in the pocket to find out what it was, but Debussy stopped his with a word. "Don't touch, or you'll face certain death. When it is needed, my gift will show itself. Not before."

Aladdin thanked him and turned to go. "There is one other thing," said Debussy. "I'm hungry, and I shall have your Stalkan for my meal."

"No, you can't have him!" the future sultan shouted. "He's my friend!"

"I thought you'd be unreasonable. I give you something that will help you defeat Semalil, and you turn on my hospitality. Don't you think you owe me something?"

"Perhaps, after all this is over I shall give you whatever your heart desires. But you can't take Stalkan's life!"

"I will be dead by the time you defeat Semalil, if you do. For there's still a seventy percent chance you will fail, even if you manage to obtain Nharla's gift, which I reckon to be out of your league. However, since you obviously will not be cajoled into delivering the Stalkan to me, I shall summon my aid!"

The shrillest whistle that ever was emitted from an iguana was heard, and presently the trio were surrounded by five golems.

"I'll protect you, Stalkan!" Aladdin said, stepping in front of him.

"There's no need," the Stalkan assured him, as three of the golem obeyed Debussy's orders to grab Aladdin and the lobster, the latter of whom was completely indifferent to the scene unfolding around him. One golem attempted to grab the Stalkan, but as soon as his stone fingers touched the body of his prey, he crumpled as if an erosive wind had run through him. Another suffered the same fate, followed by two more. The last one was more intelligent than the others, for he attempted to put gloves on his hands. However, the Stalkan rammed himself into the golem's chest, forcing it to fail in its master's orders.

"What?!? My golems destroyed by a mere Stalkan? What is this world coming to? Oh, no, you're not leaving yet!" (Aladdin and company were at this moment retreating.) "Here come my _real _servants!"

The air was at once filled with myriad bats, at least seven hundred different species of them. For a few moments Aladdin couldn't see anything but fluttering wings and sharp fangs. And then he heard his new friend screaming for help.

"Stalkan, where are you?"

The bats had disappeared. Aladdin turned around, and was just in time to see Debussy swallow the Stalkan whole. In a rage, Jasmine's husband picked up a stick and ran at the glass case that housed the iguana, ignoring Ruffian's, "I don't think that's wise." But before the stick could make contact, Aladdin and the lobster found themselves outside Mallika.

"I'm going to make him pay for that!" Aladdin said, tears rolling down his face.

"I think we've got worse problems. Niggle's gone."

And sure enough, the rainbow-colored camel was not tethered to the fence where Aladdin had left him.


	6. Chapter 6

**Sun Glory For Mankind**

**Chapter Six**

Back at the palace, Semalil was growing impatient. He knew that all his game pieces were not set up yet, but he was eager to get the ball rolling. Every contrivance, every ploy, every scheme had to be set up perfectly, or he risked failure. But he was not one used to waiting, and his spine shivered with displeasure. He was even finding little time to enjoy Jasmine, who was a puppet to his plan since his eyes had convinced her that he was the true Aladdin.

"Maybe there's a way to hasten his homecoming," Semalil pondered aloud. "Perhaps he just needs a little purple persuasion."

He picked up one of the toys he had stolen from the late Sultan. It was a crocodile, with a long vicious snout and sturdy legs.

"I will call you, Cambrunsinburg. Awaken," Semalil said, blowing on the figure.

At once it sprung to life, standing before the Green Warden. "My life-giver!" the crocodile said in a throaty voice, lowering his head in reverence before Semalil.

"I have a drink for you," said his benefactor, pouring the contents of a vial down the crocodile's throat. It's forelegs became like hands, and the vertebral column realigned itself, until standing before Semalil was a biped monster, instead of the quadruped it had been a mere moment ago.

"What an improvement!" marveled the pseudo-Aladdin. "But that's not the only alteration I hope for you. I wish you to take this powder," handing him a bottle, "and smother it all over your skin."

The crocodile proceeded to obey this caprice of Semalil's, and when he had finished, the latter held up a mirror to his face. Cambrumsinburg was astonished to see a purple, almost lavender, mug staring back at him.

He nearly let out a roar, but then remembered that this is something crocodiles cannot do. A lingering gasp arose in the air, after he realized just how horrendous this transformation was.

"Now, there is one more thing," Semalil said. "You will not travel alone. With you will go three companions, Tonclor, Bactrax, and Onlepth." The figures appeared out of a crusty smoke as he called their names.

Tonclor was taller than Cambumsinburg, with about eight feet between his forehead and the ground. Bactrax was as obese as a sumo wrestler, and his snout was lengthened. But Onlepth seemed to be so small that at first the leader couldn't see him. The tip of the last crocodile's head barely reached Cambumsinburg's knee. He was also as thin as a toothpick. Cambumsinburg grunted, not believing that such a little wasp would be of any use.

"Now, mush!"

Nobody moved. Tonclor spoke up. "Isn't mush what they say to order sled dogs about in Alaska?"

"It doesn't matter," Semalil said. "All that is of any moment is that you get your hineys out of here, find Aladdin and make one hundred percent sure that he never comes back! Got that?"

"Yes, master," Cambumsinburg said, bowing.

The troupe left, and Semalil breathed a sigh of relief. He had feared that the crocodiles would be too slow to carry out his orders. The day progressed, and he soaked in some sun, which was not a good sight, since it blemished his green skin. Six hours after the crocodiles had left the palace, he had a brilliant idea.

"What if," he said, pulling out a rhinoceros figurine, "I were not only to create Aladdin's destroyers but also his protector? That would be a fun game."

He brought it near his face. "Brummagem, awaken," he said, blowing on it.

The same ritual progressed. A rhino appeared, and Semalil forced it to take a drink. It turned into a biped, but instead of having it rub lavender powder over its skin, this time it was bile-colored. The rhino shrieked so loudly when he saw his transformation that he broke three mirrors.

"Your job is to keep Aladdin out of harm's way," Semalil said. 'But do not meet him until he leaves Zancrushin Valley and obtains the Golden Keycorn. If you do, this game will be pointless. Now, go!"

Brummagem did not hesitate. A few guards saw him running out, and they were alarmed. But when they came to ask the pseudo-Aladdin about it, he just dismissed Brummagem as a phantasm.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Aladdin was worrying about how to reach their next destination.

"Zancrushin Valley," Ruffian said. "It's quite a distance, and without Niggle, we are presented with a handicap. Why not hire a rickshaw?"

"What's a rickshaw?"

"Sort of like a taxi. It's a wagon in which one rides, and a runner pulls the wagon to wherever you wish to go, for a price."

"I didn't bring any money with me."

"Oh, the rickshaw drivers in the next town don't want money. They specialize in maggots."

Aladdin turned to the place where Niggle had been tethered. There was the barrel of maggots he had received in exchange for the Magic Carpet. "We'll meet again friend, I hope," he said, using apostrophe, as Carpet was obviously not present to hear this optimism.

They trudged to the town and found a man with a milky-white moustache near such a cart as Ruffian had described. "Can you take me to Zancrushin Valley?"

"That's a long distance, aye! It will cost you a barrelful of maggots."

Aladdin lifted the lid of his barrel. The maggots seemed so grotesque; he was glad that he would no longer be forced to carry this burden.

"Well, then, that's just the right amount. Put it behind the counter and place a krinsem cloth over it, so that no one will have a mind to run off with it while I'm away. I'll go prepare the rickshaw."

The man went outside, and Ruffian followed him. "Wait, where are you going?" Aladdin asked.

"He's not to be trusted. I have a feeling that he's planning to cheat you."

"But he left me with the maggots. What could he get out of it?"

"I'll explain later. If I don't pinch him with these puissant chelae of mine, he'll disappear before you can say 'Jiminy Cricket.'"

Aladdin quickly put the krimsen cloth over the barrel and went out of the shop. The rickshaw was ready, and Ruffian was pinching left and right. "Get your dumb, iridescent crab away from me!"

"I'm not dumb," Ruffian said, "for I can talk. I'm not a crab, for I am a lobster. And I'm not iridescent, for I am only one color and do not ever change."

"He was just trying to make sure it's not a swindle," Aladdin said, hopping in the rickshaw, with the lobster coming in after him.

"If you try anything funny, I've got a few bruises I'd like to give you," Ruffian said.

The driver with the milky moustache groaned, but he pulled up the two handles and started running. It took two hours to arrive at the valley, since the driver had to take an occasional rest break.

The two passengers decamped, and Ruffian made one last swipe at the driver's foot before he and his rickshaw left them.

"Now, why did you have to follow him when we could've just taken the maggots if he was going to swindle us?"

"Because you were going to put a krimsen cloth over the barrel. That cloth is covered with an oil known as vendorsuite, and when it is put over any object, the object is transported to another site and replaced with an empty one of its kind. It's sort of like a Portkey, except not. Anyhow, an empty barrel would've awaited you if you had removed the cloth."

"If I didn't have you around, Ruffian, I might get hoodwinked. Now, where would Nharla be?" he asked, glancing around the valley.

"I think that tent might be a perfect domicile," Ruffian said.

The tent in question was red with white stripes. Or was it white with red stripes? It was hard to tell. Aladdin entered cautiously, with Ruffian following as quiet as a mouse.

A peal of thunder was heard when they entered. "Who goes there?" asked an eerie voice.

"It is I, Aladdin, sent on an errand from the Genie, in order to find the woman Nharla."

"Genie?" the voice asked. A young woman stepped forward from the shadows. "Oh, you're the boy that stole Jafar's girl."

"She was not Jafar's! She never even like him, and she loved me!"

"Is that so? Allow me to show you something."

Aladdin gave Ruffian a look that said, Can we trust her? Ruffian nodded, and so Aladdin allowed Nharla to lead him into the back room of the tent, where a large screen like the one at a theater stood. At first the images on the screen were hazy, but they gradually became clearer and clearer and focus. Aladdin saw himself, only with a sickly green hue. "Is that a mirror?" he asked.

"Raise your right arm," Nharla said, as her only answer.

Aladdin obliged. The green Aladdin on the screen did not raise his left.

"It's not a mirror," he concluded. "But what is it?"

"Watch."

The screen shifted, and Aladdin saw Jasmine, as beautiful as ever. She seemed to be reading aloud from a poetry book. Aladdin could not hear a thing she was saying, but there was a smile on her face. Had she forgotten her father already? And how could she be happy while he, her husband, was away? Then Jasmine stood up and went over to Semalil's throne, kissing him on the lips.

"But that's not me!" Aladdin tried to shout at Jasmine.

"She cannot hear you," Nharla said. Her voice had suddenly become coy.

Aladdin turned to her. He had already noted her youth, but now he saw that she possessed a rare level of comeliness. Indeed, as much as he hated to admit it, she outshone Jasmine in beauty. He tried to shake himself of the thought, but it just wouldn't leave him.

"Before I tell you what you must do, why not check your fortune with some tarot cards?"

"You can see the future?"

"I like to think so. Actually, I often say the future can see me."

"Well, I suppose it couldn't…hurt," Aladdin said, not bothering to turn to Ruffian. Every time Nharla spoke, he had a greater amount of eagerness to spend time with her. Whatever would hinder his leave-taking of her was welcome.

Nharla now led him to another back room in the tent, where there was a card table. She sat down on one side, and he sat across from her. She shuffled a deck and pulled three cards, turning them over one by one as she explained them.

"Ivory. That could mean one of two things. Either there is a traitor in your future, or you will encounter a whale before you get home."

"It must be the former. Jasmine's already betrayed me, and it's unlikely I'll meet a whale, since I don't have to cross the ocean to reach home."

"Second card," said Nharla. ""Three swords. There will be three kinsmen and three wraiths in your future."

"What's a wraith?"

"A wraith is a sort of ghost."

"Ah, I don't believe in those creatures. Once someone is dead, they are gone."

"People who have lost their true love to death believe that the spirit of the loved one comes back for them when it is their turn to die."

"That's great in theory, but until I see it, I will not believe it."

"Let's just have faith that you'll never be given that opportunity," Nharla said, knowing that every word she spoke increased Aladdin's love for her. She turned over the last card. "No! It's the calf's head. This means mortal peril before a battle is won. This certainly spells your doom, Aladdin!"

Aladdin almost found it hard to choke out a syllable, but he finally managed to say, "I'm sure…it's not for certain, is it? One can change their future, can't they?"

"Certainly, but I wouldn't risk it if I were you. Hey, I just had an idea. How about you not assemble the Golden Keycorn, remain here with me as if you were my husband, and not bother about Jasmine ever again?"

"I can't do that, Nharla. I am determined to finish this game."

"Fine," she said, exasperated. "Follow me."

This time she took him outside the tent to a tiny garden, where ears of maize were glistening in the sunlight. "You need to find Golden Keycorn, which is hidden among these stalks. They are very rare, and you will have to gather at least seven of them before you can create a key, which is what you are here for. I will help you with the first, because it is doubtful that you've seen Golden Keycorn before."

She searched about and spotted the ear she wanted. "See how this has a small red tint to it, which slightly conceals the green hue underneath? You must find similar stalks to this one, but I warn you, it won't be easy. It might take you days if you don't have keen eyes. I cannot help you, but I will be more than happy to keep you company."

Aladdin walked about among the corn stalks, while Nharla prattled away. In some ways, her chatting was a hindrance, for he would rather listen to her beautiful voice than search meticulously for Golden Keycorn. By the time dusk set in, he had only gathered five ears, counting the one Nharla had helped him find.

"There's no use searching in the dark," she said. "Let's go inside."

By this time, Aladdin was as in love with Nharla as he had been when he and Jasmine first kissed. While he slept, she remained awake, murmuring in the same room.

When he awoke, his head was so full of Nharla that only a vestige of his love for Jasmine remained. He couldn't even remember his wife's name, just her image. But Nharla seemed so much nicer.

It took him seven hours to find the other two ears he needed, among the millions of stalks. At last it was time to make the key.

Nharla demonstrated how it was to be done. Using a piece of turkin string and a bottle of glue, Aladdin had to attach the kernels together until he had created something in the shape of a key. He would know he finished when it glowed bright red.

Aladdin worked diligently on the key, but his fingers were not nimble enough, and Nharla persuaded him to take a rest the first day. He was still not done on the eve of the second day, and he practically had to be goaded to even continue when dawn roused from him from his dreams on the fourth morning since his visit to Nharla's tent.

'Finally, at noon, he completed the key, but by this time he had forgotten Jasmine altogether. Thus, when Nharla beseeched him to remain with her and evade danger, he had the temerity to say, "I will remain."


	7. Chapter 7

**Sun Glory For Mankind**

**Chapter Seven**

Cambrunsinburg and his troupe arrived at Zancrushin Valley. Aladdin had to be here, for they had searched all the other places he was supposed to visit and discovered not a trace. If he was not here, they were goners.

"I'll check," Onlepth offered. "I'm small and speedy and will be back in a jiff."

"Peanut butter," Bactrax said, as Onlepth vanished into the valley.

"Don't think about food at a time like this," Cambrunsinburg warned. "It's time to figure out how we are to destroy Aladdin if the shrimp reports back that he is here."

"Shrimp taste good fried," said Bactrax.

"Can you imbeciles think about anything other than your stomachs?"

"Stop generalizing, Cam," said Tonclor, the tall one. "I'd rather starve than eat when we're on a mission."

"So you say. But what about the four hundred wild berries you stole from the village we passed three days ago? You didn't seem so keen to pursue your duty then."

"Ah, but Cam, sometimes a famished belly takes over one's mind."

"Not mine. My mind is perfectly free from such temptations," their leader said.

"I smell maize," Bactrax said, sniffing the air.

"It's called corn, you big oaf. When will that shrimp get back?"

"It's a wide valley, Cam. Don't be impatient."

Shortly Onlepth returned with good news. "He is indeed in this valley and has fallen under the spell of the enchantress, Nharla."

"Oh, goodie. We get to babysit a lovesick puppy," the leader said, sarcastically. "Well, Shrimp, you get the honor of showing us the way."

"Stop calling me Shrimp!"

"I'm the leader and I can call you whatever I desire! Do you dare question my authority?"

"No, I question your sagacity."

"Trying out your big words on me now, aren't you? I order you to be quiet for the rest of this mission. One peep out of you and I'll strangle your throat."

"If you can catch me, that is," Onlepth muttered under his breath.

Tonclor, despite being the tallest, had sensitive ears and related this last impudence to the leader.

"Too bad he doesn't know about my pores," Cambrunsinburg whispered to Tonclor, "which can lure any of you three to my body whenever I choose, like a magnet. It doesn't matter how fast Shrimp is. If he makes me angry, I'll kill him."

"Oh, heavenly maize," said Bactrax. "All around us. What we need is some Crisco and I'll be happy."

"Why don't you wait for some grilled Aladdin?" the leader asked, as Nharla's tent came into view.

"Is that a foreign dish?"

"No, you stupid lout! Aladdin is the man we're supposed to keep from returning to the sultan's palace"

"But I thought we were supposed to get a bowl of broccoli au gratin and _bring _it to the sultan's palace."

"Ugh!" Cambrunsinburg exclaimed, aiming a punch at Bactrax' thick armor.

"We're here," Tonclor announced when Onlepth pointed to his mouth to indicate that he was pledged to silence.

"Hmmm…nice pad. Too bad the boy and his little girlfriend are about to suffer such pain. Oh well…"

Cambrunsinburg tore at the tent flap and poked his head in. It was a lot more commodious inside than out, which baffled him. Wasn't there some kind of law that made this impossible? Unless magic was at hand here. Hadn't the shrimp called Nharla an enchantress? Yeah, that must be it. Oh, never mind. Just grab Aladdin and run.

He entered the tent and searched for humans. They were in the back and all he could see here was a glow-in-the-dark lobster. Did lobsters normally glow in the dark? Maybe this was an ally; Semalil had turned him into a biped and changed his color after all. It would not be beneath him to give a lobster a unique ability as well.

Ruffian stared at the intruder. Cambrunsinburg spoke. "I'm only here for the boy. Semalil sent me."

"Then we are comrades, so to speak," said the lobster."

"You used to be one of those toys?"

"Yes, I was born from the sultan's playthings."

"How many more of us are there?"

"What does it matter, Croc? You're looking for Al, right? He's in the back."

"Thank you, lobster. There will be time to become better acquainted later."

"There _may _be time. Of course, failure is always a possibility."

Cambrunsinburg swung his tail in rage, knocking over a lamp and a box of tarot cards. "I WILL NOT FAIL!'

"Now it is my turn to thank you, Croc. You have alerted the humans of your presence."

The leader of the crocodiles approached the spot where Ruffian lay with the intentions of stomping on him. However, the lobster vanished in thin air. This deterred Cambrunsinburg for a minute or two, after which he searched the tent for Aladdin, whom he intended to tear limb from limb. But nobody was there save himself. _Tricked! _He thought. _By a bioluminescent lobster. He'll pay for that!_

Heading toward the front of the tent, he attempted to leave. However, the flap would not open. He tore vigorously at the sides of the tent, but they remained firm and impenetrable. Cambrunsinburg was trapped.

Ruffian was not incorrect when he had told the crocodile that his yelling alerted Aladdin and Nharla to his presence. They had escaped through the tent's sides with Nharla's magic, which dissolved their skin long enough for them to get through. Ruffian had been summoned by the trumpet-ring that Nharla wore on her neck. Then she had sealed up the tent so that Cambrunsinburg could not escape no matter what he did.

Now it was three against three. Aladdin and Nharla would be the two main fighters, as Ruffian could not do much of anything except pinch, which could hardly bring pain to the warriors they were facing. Onlepth was nothing to fret about—it would be like fighting a domestic cat. But Bactrax was as wide as three people, and Tonclor was taller than if Nharla had stood on Aladdin's shoulders. So the advantage of bulk went entirely to the crocodile side.

"Aladdin, my love, you tackle the tall one and I'll handle Mr. Round."

"Sure thing, sweet-pea," said our love-struck hero.

Aladdin pulled a rusty knife from his pocket and stuck it between Tonclor's teeth. This would keep the crocodile from biting him, which would be unfair. Then Aladdin attempted to twist Tonclor's hand around his back, but Onlepth grabbed onto his ankles pulling him back, deliberating over which of Aladdin's toes to bite first.

Nharla had a magical sword which she thrust through Bactrax' midriff. It sliced a hole in his armor but did no greater damage. He pulled her close to him and examined her ear as if she were a cow being sent to the slaughterhouse. "A nice morsel you'd make, human. I wonder what you'd taste like if you were covered in whipped cream and placed on top of a chocolate cake."

"I'd taste like this, fat boy!" she exclaimed, hitting his front jaw with her sword, causing blood to sprout from it. Bactrax staggered back about three feet. "I like food that bites back," he said with a grin. Then he curled up into a ball to roll over Nharla and leave her flat. She turned her slippers into flying shoes and balanced on top of Bactrax, running on his body like a circus performer.

Aladdin kicked the small one under the chin, sending him flying into Bactrax, which caused the latter to stop and Nharla to trip and fall prone on the ground. "Ah, now I've got you!" Bactrax said with glee.

"No, Nharla!" Aladdin shouted. But it was too late. Nharla's fall had knocked her senseless, and Bactrax was able to crush her easily.

"Ah, the meat is now tenderized. All we need is a good fire and—"

"Bactrax, when have you ever needed to cook your food?" Tonclor asked, still struggling with Aladdin but giving half his attention to his comrade.

"But this is a human, Tonc. It requires something special. Don't mind if I sit this fight out while I make fire."

"Okay, whatever. Wasp, get over here now. I could use a hand."

Onlepth approached, warily. He could not take another kick. Coming closer, he was accosted by the lobster. "You're not going anywhere, shrimp," Ruffian said.

"Who you calling shrimp, seafood?"

They rolled over in a fight while Aladdin continued to parry Tonclor's blows. Then a loud roaring was heard from somewhere twenty yards away. Brummagem, whose armor was bile-yellow appeared and drove his horn into Bactrax' center, causing him to break smoothly into two pieces as though he were an apple. Then the rhino grabbed Tonclor with his heavy arms and held him on the ground, ready to beat him to a pulp.

"Wait!" Aladdin called. "Ask him if we can revive Nharla." He pointed to his loved one's dead form.

"Crocodile tears cannot bring back the dead," Tonclor said, solemnly. The rhino chucked him hard under the chin. "When Cam gets our of his bind, you will pay for that!" he shouted indignantly. But Brummagem continued to pummel him, until finally his body lay lifeless.

All that remained was Onlepth, which both the rhino and Aladdin thought would be a piece of cherry pie. The tiny alligator had tossed Ruffian twenty feet in the air, then turned to face his aggressors. Aladdin tried to grab him, but he was too quick. Brummagem nearly stopped on him. However, he managed to trip both of them and grabbed Aladdin by the ear.

Just before Onlepth could call forth the dust that would take him to the Palace of Agrabah instantly, he disappeared without a trace.

"What happened?" Aladdin asked his rescuer. "Did you destroy him?"

"No, it's like he simply disintegrated."

Ruffian's brains were a little addled, but he could still make out Aladdin's shape. "Is the battle over?"

"Yes, and it ended quite strangely, too," Aladdin said. Both he and the rhino rose to their feet. They shook hands, introducing themselves. Aladdin felt some of his flesh scrape off as he removed his hand.

"I would've been here sooner if I hadn't been ordered to steer clear of Zamcrushin Valley," Brummagem said. "An instinct told me to abandon these orders. I could sense that they intended to kill you, which I could not allow to happen. I am now here to take you back."

"I suppose it is time to go, but…" Aladdin stared longingly at Nharla. He walked over to her prostrate form to get a better look.

"Let her go, Al," Ruffian said. "She's gone, caput. You know what Tonclor said. Not even crocodile tears can bring back the dead."

Aladdin sighed, sheathing Nharla's sword. He turned back to the others. "You're right, Ruffian. But how are you planning on taking us home, Brummagem?"

"I was thinking of letting you ride on my shoulders."

"And let this happen to my legs?" Aladdin asked, holding up his fried hand. "No thanks."

"Or we could just use dust ourselves to a place a couple of blocks away from the palace," the lobster suggested.

"That sounds good. I'll do the honors," said the rhino. He did a low but shrill whistle that sounded a little like the rattling of bones. Then swirls of dust blew around them and their sights changed. Now they were standing in a crowded marketplace, the selfsame marketplace where Aladdin had met Jasmine. He instantly forgot about Nharla.

It is important to take a brief examination of what happened to Onlepth at this point and explain why he was unable to bring Aladdin to Agrabah himself. At the precise moment when he intended to summon the dust, Cambrunsinburg had tapped his pores. Onlepth was lured to his body and trapped in the tent alongside him.

"What news, shrimp?"

Onlepth was terrified of telling his boss the truth. "We…have had some misfortunes, sir."

"Misfortunes? What sort?"

"We, as a group, lost," he said.

"Yes, of course you did—without me you three must've been worthless! Losing to a woman, a man, and a lobster! How weak can you guys be?"

"B-but a rhino turned up, sir."

"Oh, did one?"

"He defeated Trax and Tonc. Then I tripped him, and…" Onlepth lost his fear as he realized how close he had come to victory. "Why, you stupid Cam! Look what you've done! All I had to was summon the dust and I would've been Semalil's most trustworthy servant. Now, thanks to you, the boy will return to the palace safely."

"Was Aladdin alive when you attempted to summon the dust?"

"Yes."

Here Cambrunsinburg let out a hollow laugh. "And you call me an idiot? Did not Semalil order us to kill Aladdin? You would've been bringing him home and disobeying our master. How could you be in his good books then, hmmm?"

"I-I don't know," Onlepth said, shaking vigorously. Cambrunsinburg had released him so that he could talk freely, but now he magnetized the little one with his pores again. Then Cambrunsinburg ripped off Onlepth's head and swallowed it. He walked over to the flap and discovered that he was free. Nharla's magic had ended a full half-hour after her death.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Aladdin and company contemplated how they would approach the palace. It would most likely be heavily guarded. They needed a plan.

"How about I go in front and you two follow?" the rhino asked.

"That could work," Aladdin said.

"But we'd have to trust his eyes," the lobster said, skeptically.

"Well, if we can't trust each other, who can we trust?"

"No one," Ruffian said philosophically.

"We must do _something," _Aladdin said.

"Why don't we just ditch Sir Rhinoceros and approach the palace ourselves?"

"Or, how about I walk forty or fifty feet away from you two, but we keep each other in sight?" Brammagem asked.

"That sounds swell," Aladdin said.

"I don't like it all," Ruffian told them. "But it will have to do."

Thus, the rhino and the other two separated created a fifty-foot gap between them. Then they strode toward the palace, afraid of what they might find there.

Aladdin was the first to notice the shadow in the sky. It was right in front of the palace and it hovered ominously. He saw a giant eye peering down at him. "So the prodigal prince has returned," it bellowed. "I am Humphrey the whale, and I have bad news for you. You're not returning to the palace!" It bent forward so that its blowhole could be seen. A ray of red light shot out and hit Brummagem full in the chest. He collapsed in a heap, unconscious. Aladdin stared up at this antagonist from Hades and knew that he'd be lucky to survive…


End file.
